


Soft and Steady

by Molly_Jae



Category: Shadowhunters (TV), The Mortal Instruments Series - Cassandra Clare
Genre: Andrew Underhill (mentioned) - Freeform, Downworlder Dad Magnus Bane, Fluff, Lorenzo Rey (Mentioned) - Freeform, Lorenzo Rey/Andrew Underhill (Mentioned) - Freeform, M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-11-30
Updated: 2020-11-30
Packaged: 2021-03-10 05:21:06
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,354
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27799138
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Molly_Jae/pseuds/Molly_Jae
Summary: Magnus looks back at the two years he's had as Mr. Lightwood-Bane, and shares a moment with Alec after their friends' wedding.
Relationships: Magnus Bane/Alec Lightwood
Kudos: 50





	Soft and Steady

**Author's Note:**

> Born out of a large bout of anxiety and stress.
> 
> First oneshot in the fandom, and definitely not going to be the last.

It was times like these, Magnus supposed, that made him love his shadowhunter even more. They were beyond exhausted; it had been an overwhelming morning, followed by a draining afternoon, and an even longer night. With all the changes Alexander was helping cultivate in the Clave as its Inquisitor, he was on call for practically any Institute hoping to implement their own Downworld Cabinet. Magnus, on the other hand, was still very much adjusting to being the first High Warlock of Alicante. There were plenty of wards to be modified and client relationships to be made and fostered.

They had known the life they’d chosen wasn’t easy, but neither of them had foreseen days of barely seeing each other a few days short of their second anniversary.

Where the first few months of their relationship had been ruled by Valentine’s return and Lilith’s mess, the first year of their marriage dominated by their adjustment from being the Head of the New York Institute and the former High Warlock of Brooklyn to the new Inquisitor of the Clave and the High Warlock of Alicante. And the second year of their marriage? It had been a test of their capabilities as leaders, partners, and husbands.

As leaders, they constantly had to prove they were deserving of their positions and that they had the ability to follow through with their propositions.

As partners, they learned to maneuver the balance of working with each other and working for each other. Their jobs never set foot in their relationship, with Magnus curbing his more risqué jokes and flirtations during meetings that involved himself and his husband, and Alec rarely engaging when a client managed to impose upon their home ~~(he preferred Magnus meet them at his Clave-provided office, if only so he and Magnus could have the home office to themselves all the time, but he would never admit that).~~

As husbands, they were seen as the epitome of the supposedly perfect inter-faction couple. Magnus’ rescue of Alicante blew wide open the seal upon who his father was. It was practically common knowledge by then that he was the son of a Fallen Angel. And to have a nephilim whose name could very well date back centuries with a warlock as infamous as Magnus, they had no shortage of people wanting to poke and prod at what their relationship was like.

Their marriage especially, seemed to often be called into question. Between Magnus’ incapability to bear runes and subject himself to shadowhunter tradition in that way and Alec’s own inability to partake in certain warlock-specific rituals, there were those that didn’t hesitate to shoot their shot with either men.

As if their marriage would end simply because they came from such different worlds.

On the other side of the coin was that because they came from such different worlds, different couples were coming to them for _advice_ now. Inter-faction relationships of all varieties reached out to the High Warlock of Alicante to hopefully gain an audience with both of them ~~(because it was an open secret that the High Warlock was far easier to move with a sob story and had actually gained a new layer of reputation as Downworlder Dad when all those that he’d helped over the centuries came to visit him)~~.

“Anything you’d like to share?”

Magnus shook his head to clear his wayward thoughts and let himself be tugged into his husband’s chest. The sound of a portal closing barely registered to Magnus as he focused on Alec’s heartbeat.

Andrew and Lorenzo had invited them for dinner, which had actually ended up being so that the Lightwood-Banes could be the witnesses to their not-entirely-shotgun-shotgun wedding. Magnus didn’t have much room to speak considering the speed with which he and Alec had proceeded with both their courtship and engagement, but he did like to think he’d at least have the better wedding for the simple fact that it was the _first_ downworlder and shadowhunter wedding that was duly recognized by the Clave. Alec, of course, liked to tease him that Lorenzo was the first Highwarlock to marry a shadowhunter, on the technicality that Magnus had already been married when he had been made High Warlock of Alicante. More than that, Andrew and Lorenzo were the first to be married under the full moon by a Seelie. Really, even when they’d explained why, all Magnus could think about was how different this Lorenzo was to the one he’d practically had no guilt turning into a lizard.

“I love you,” Magnus murmured, reaching up to cradle Alec’s face. The Lightwood ring shined against the rising Alicante sun, making him melt even further into his husband’s arms. _His husband._ He was never going to get tired of saying that, was he?

Alec pressed a kiss to his lips, soft and chaste. “I love you too. Now would you like to share what you were thinking?”

“It was sweet of you to do that.” Magnus hummed. “I know it meant a lot to Andrew to have you stand as part of his family.” Alec may not have been Andrew’s sugenes, but Andrew had wanted him there all the same in addition to the friend he’d selected. Him and Magnus, really, as the New York Institute’s Head of Security and the former High Warlock of Brooklyn became good friends after bonding over all the ways to tease their boyfriends.

“As if you weren’t just as important there,” Alec huffed, using one of his hands to cover Magnus’, his own wedding ring glinting.

“But it’s different with you because you know exactly where he’s coming from and what he’s going through.”

“No,” the shadowhunter shook his head. “Not exactly. I wouldn’t have had the courage to accept myself if it weren’t for you, Magnus. Andrew didn’t have that problem. He’d known he was gay and he didn’t deny it. What prejudices he had against downworlders had been easily overcome after just a few weeks at the Institute.” He gently pulled Magnus’ hand away from his face so that he could place kisses to his knuckles, ending on the ancestral ring he once thought he’d never get to place there. “What he and I were talking about earlier—what he was freaking about earlier— had more to do with his wanting to leave the Clave.”

“Yes, I overheard a bit of that.” Magnus admitted, smiling fondly when Alec used his thumb and forefinger to fiddle with Magnus’ ring. “Lorenzo and I have agreed to go out for drinks after their honeymoon as well.”

“I told him that as the Inquisitor, the only thing I could tell him was that to leave the Clave means to be deruned and effectively banned from nephilim society.”

“And as his friend?”

“Should it come down to it, there are people who would support him through the changes he’d need to adapt to. We don’t leave our friends and family behind.” They both thought of Clary, who had been gaining her memories throughout the second year of the Lightwood-Banes’ marriage, “Not when the Angels themselves want them to forget us.” They thought of Raphael, who was a human priest now, serving his Faith as he’d always wanted to, “Not when we’re forced to accept unforeseen challenges.”

They thought of each other, and of all the plans they had together.

“Not when somethings don’t line up.”

Magnus turned their hands so he could press a kiss to Alec’s wrist. “Yet.” He sighed, smiling.

“Yet,” agreed his husband, pressing another kiss to his forehead. “Now let’s go get some sleep. I already called ahead to tell Aline not to bother sending me so much as a text if some Institute was burning down or there was another giant rift that will cause the end of the world for the next three days. We barely got to celebrate our second wedding anniversary together.”

“We had a lovely dinner in Paris!” Magnus scoffed, laughing as he was bodily moved to the direction of their bedroom.

“Yes well I wanted three rounds of dessert but only got one and a half.”

“Alexander!”

“Magnus!”

**Author's Note:**

> Relatively short and sweet, considering how long my fics usually are.
> 
> Leave a comment or a kudo if you wish!
> 
> 💚


End file.
